New Wiring

[CrazyFool]

Hi All

Just bought a new house and I'm going to rewire it.
My question is about the old wiring...
Can I pull the old wires out with pliers or something similar or will they live in the walls forever?
I'm wondering if pulling the wires out will have the added benefit of doing some of the chasing for me.
I'm not living there, so electricity not essential while I slowly work on it. I'll get electrician to make the final connections and to provide general oversight.

Its an old Victorian house and the current wiring is buried in solid brick walls with a layer of plaster. Not sure which era the current wiring is from.

Thanks in advance

 

[ericmark]

The first thing you need to do is apply to the council and pay their fee, in Wales £100 plus vat, and they will assess your ability, only done it once, they wanted to see my test gear and calibration certificates, and any certificates to show your ability. They can insist it is tested at stages by an inspector of their selection, and you pay for the testing. It depends how skilled they feel you are.

There is a set procedure for proving dead. Basic three tests, you prove the tester works, you test for dead, then prove the tester still works. The tester does not have any switches which can be wrongly set, and no batteries to go flat, and the proving unit should test at 50 and 500 volt testing at 500 volt only does not ensure the tester will show voltages of 50 and above.

Yes I know many sparks don't use the proper meter or procedure, but you need to know how it should be done to prove to the LABC inspector you do know what you are doing. I have used my multi-meter many times, but I know what I am doing does not comply, and know what answers to give when questioned.

But even with the correct procedure I have still had cables become live while working on them, where some automatic device has made them live, like a timer or thermostat.

Since you ask the question I would say likely the LABC will not allow you to do your own rewire, and if they do you will likely pay more for the privilege than it would cost using a scheme member electrician.

Scheme membership can include inspecting other peoples work, but very few electricians pay for that ability, it is really so other trades within the same firm can do some electrical work which is then inspected and tested by the electrician, but only in England, not permitted here in Wales.

 

[Murdochcat]

Hum. I would say you need a spark to agree all this WELL before you start.

I have never done what you are suggesting for a customer

 

[Taylortwocities]

Hum. I would say you need a spark to agree all this WELL before you start.

I have never done what you are suggesting for a customer

Indeed. With respect, you do not appear to have the skill, knowledge or equipment to carry out what is a heart & lung replacement for your house. The work has to be CERTIFIED to BS7671 standards & NOTIFIED as conforming to building regulations. Without this you’ll have reall problems when you come to sell the house. And what you do may not even be safe!
Only the electrician that has designed, installed and tested the work can do this.

We understand that you would like to save money by doing much of the grunt work. Many electricians will let you do this. Find yourself a registered spark that will let you help out. They are all listed here

https://electricalcompetentperson.co.uk/

Under his/her guidance, the electrician can ensure that the cables are correctly installed, are the right ones and that everything conforms to the required standards. They can then do final tests and deliver the required paperwork.

 

[ebee]

Hum. I would say you need a spark to agree all this WELL before you start.

I have never done what you are suggesting for a customer

Likewise

 

[RandomGrinch]

Only the electrician that has designed, installed and tested the work can do this.

We understand that you would like to save money by doing much of the grunt work.

...and even just doing the grunt work can be problematic - as a couple of recent posts have shown - given the timescale for DIY rewires can be long, there may be issues should the original supervising electrician pass away, or retire and lose their scheme accreditation etc.

 

[ericmark]

I have never done what you are suggesting for a customer

Before Part P my son went sole trader, and he did a couple of jobs where the client was doing some of the work, he would mark out where cables runs had to be, for client to cut out, arrange a return date, arrive to find work not done, to then re-arrange day was too late, so he had to run his tool down the wall, less lose to him doing extra work to going home to twiddle thumbs.

The result was when asked again to allow client to do some of the work, a clear no, no way was he doing that again, unless agreement was to be paid by the hour. Quoting for work simply not possible when being messed around.

So it is unlikely you will find an electrician which will allow you to do the prep work, doing the making good after yes, but not prep.

Also when his wife left him, he simply could not arrange work and do work at the same time, and he decided to go cards in again. The agreement was with his new job no outside electrical work after set date, the time was enough that he should have finished off all work started, but there were a few jobs not completed as client was not ready on time. He had no option but to say sorry, can't do it, mainly as was by then living in a narrow boat, so no way to contact him.

So you do not want a sole trader when doing a job over a long time, it needs to be some firm well established, and getting a well established firm to work allowing you to DIY is unlikely.

This means in real terms LABC is the only option, theroy is the LABC inspector has 2 weeks to inspect at each stage, if not inspected on time one can continue, but try doing that if you dare. If the LABC will accept the installation certificate signed by you, then OK, you pay the fee, do the work, submit the installation certificate, and completion certificate comes in the post.

If however they want to inspect and test, they can at your expense use a third party inspector, this can cost more than getting a firm to do the job.

 

[CrazyFool]

Thanks guys.
This is great advice.
I'll talk to the electrician first.

 

[SUNRAY]

Indeed. With respect, you do not appear to have the skill, knowledge or equipment to carry out what is a heart & lung replacement for your house. The work has to be CERTIFIED to BS7671 standards & NOTIFIED as conforming to building regulations. Without this you’ll have reall problems when you come to sell the house. And what you do may not even be safe!
Only the electrician that has designed, installed and tested the work can do this.

We understand that you would like to save money by doing much of the grunt work. Many electricians will let you do this. Find yourself a registered spark that will let you help out. They are all listed here

https://electricalcompetentperson.co.uk/

Under his/her guidance, the electrician can ensure that the cables are correctly installed, are the right ones and that everything conforms to the required standards. They can then do final tests and deliver the required paperwork.

What a totally appalling site that is, 3 fully qualified and registered that I know of living within a mile of me are not included, neither are 2 of the companies I work for and one of those sits on IET committees